Cost of Data Breach Report 2022: 10 Key Takeaways Businesses Should Keep an Eye On

According to IBM’s cost of data breach report 2022, the average cost of a data breach has reached $4.35 million. This might not seem like a big increase when you compare it with the cost of data breach 2021 which stood at $4.24 million but when you compare it with the cost of data breach 2020, which was $3.86 million, you can see a 12% increase in the last two years.

The cost of data breach report 2022 looks at 550 data breaches in 17 different countries and 17 different industries. The report also brings to light some eye opening facts and offers some useful insights. Want to know more about the key findings of the cost of data breach report 2022? You have come to the right place.

In this article, Anti DDoS highlights key takeaways from IBM’s cost of data breach report 2022.

Cost of Data Breach Report 2022: 10 Key Takeaways

Here are ten key takeaways from cost of data breach report 2022, that businesses should focus on:

1.   Cost of Critical Infrastructure Data Breaches Shot Through The Roof

The average cost of data breach for critical infrastructure was $4.82 million. This is not only $1 million higher than other industries but also higher than the average cost of data breach. Furthermore, 28% of critical infrastructure organizations experienced a ransomware or destructive attack and 17%  had to face a data breach due to a business partner. You might be wondering what constitutes critical infrastructure organizations? Businesses offering financial services or operating in transportation, energy, technology, communication, healthcare, education or public sector all come under the realm of critical infrastructure organization.

2.   Ransomware Is Still a Major Threat

Even though the average cost of ransomware attack, excluding the ransom payment, dipped from $4.62 million in 2021 to $4.54 million in 2022, it is still the most dangerous threat targeting businesses. Ransomware led data breaches rose from 7.8% in 2021 to 11% in 2022, which translates into a 41% year-over-year increase. The cost of destructive attacks also went up from $4.69 million in 2021 to $5.12 million in 2022

3.   Healthcare Data Breaches Are Most Expensive

When it comes to different industries, healthcare leads the way. The average cost of data breaches in healthcare has reached a whopping $10.1 million in 2022, which is a 42% increase when you compare it with the average cost of healthcare data breach which was $7.13 million in 2020. Keep in mind that this is not the first time healthcare topped the list of cost of data breaches. It has been doing so for 12 years in a row.

4.   Zero Trust Will Save You Money

The number of businesses implementing zero trust architecture has grown from 35% in 2021 to 41% in 2022. Not only that, enterprises who implemented zero trust architecture saved $1 million in data breaches. Unfortunately, 59% of businesses who have not implemented zero trust architecture were on the receiving end as data breaches cost them $1 million more on average.

5.   Proven Incident Response Plan Can Reduce Financial Damage

According to the cost of data breach report 2022, tried and tested incident response plans and well prepared incident response teams are two of the best ways to minimize the cost of data breaches. In fact, a proven incident response plan can help you save $2.66 million on average in case of data breach. Despite this, 37% of businesses don’t put their incident response plan to the test regularly, while 73% businesses do so rigorously.

6.   Cloud Is The New Target

Did you know that 45% of all data breaches occurred in the cloud? Yes, that’s right. With more and more businesses jumping on the cloud bandwagon, cyberattackers have also turned their attention to the cloud. Cost of data breaches varied based on different types of cloud. For instance, the average cost of data breach for hybrid cloud was much lower than the average cost of data breach for public and private cloud.

Here is the average cost of data breach for different types of cloud in 2022

• Public Cloud ($5.02 million)
• Private Cloud ($4.24 million)
• Hybrid Cloud ($80 million)

Compare these numbers with last year’s data and you can see a massive difference.

Moreover, the type of cloud also has an impact on the time required to recover from the data breach. Businesses who have adopted hybrid cloud managed to recover and contain a data breach in 48 fewer days as compared to businesses who have adopted private and public cloud models.

7.   XDR Can Shorten The Breach Lifecycle

Extended detection and response technologies have tremendously helped businesses shorten the lifecycle and minimize the cost of data breaches. 44% of enterprises using XDR technologies experienced a marked improvement in data breach response times. To put numbers into perspective, businesses leveraging XDR technologies managed to recover from a data breach 29 days faster as compared to businesses that don’t use XDR technologies.

8.   Skill Shortages Are Costing Businesses

The widening talent gap and skill shortage issue is negatively impacting businesses in their fight to keep their data safe. Only 38% of respondents said that they have the human resources to deal with emerging cybersecurity challenges. This does not end here as the cost of data breach report 2022 revealed that data breach costs are $550,000 higher for businesses who are already struggling with talent shortage problems as they have understaffed cybersecurity teams.

9.   Security AI and Automation Is On The Rise

With more businesses adopting security AI and automation, its popularity is growing. The number of organizations adopting security AI and automation have jumped from 59% in 2020 to 70% in 2022. 31% of businesses who have fully implemented security AI automation managed to slash the cost of data breach by an eye opening $3.05 million. Yes, you read that right. Businesses without security AI and automation incurred $6.2 million in data breaches, while the same data breach cost businesses with security AI and automation $3.15 million- approximately 50% less.

10.   Supply Chain Compromises Are More Costly and Time Consuming

The cost of data breach report 2022 by IBM and Ponemon Institute also points out a grave issue very few businesses pay attention to. It is the growing number of supply chain attacks. According to a report, 19% of all data breaches occurred due to supply chain attacks. The worst part, these supply chain attacks are harder to detect so they take 26 days longer to resolve than average data breaches, and cost businesses more too.

What steps are you taking to minimize the risk of data breaches? Share it with us in the comments section below.